Easter in Texas - Then and Now; Southeast Texas that is

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Easter has always been a special holiday in my family.

As children, we awoke very early with my mother telling us that she knew that the Easter Bunny had come. The dining room table would hold a large basket of chocolates and gifts for each of the four of us. This is one day that Mother relaxed her rule about absolutely having to consume breakfast before you left the house.

Soon after, as a team, we would commence to look for Easter eggs hidden by the Easter Bunny! We had always boiled, cooled and colored eggs as a family the night before and left them so that the Bunny would be sure to find them, only to hide them for us!

Unless it was raining, or had been expected to overnight, the eggs were hidden in our large yard. Rainy times deemed that they were hidden in our not so large house.

As I entered high school, my mother's Easter Bunny duties (which meant staying up late at night or awakening very early in the morning to hide eggs) fell to me.

Celebrations of Jesus' resurrection were great rituals in our southern Baptist church.

In addition, as a young girl and up into my teens, I had a new dress and patent leather shoes for this occasion. Especially while I was young, I also had new baby doll socks, purse and a hat of some sort. I love hats to this day, but it's hard to find an appropriate place to wear one.

From that day until Labor Day it was also acceptable to wear white dresses and shoes, linen clothing, sandals, seersucker and straw handbags.

After church, a large family dinner was had. Oh, the food! Let me share some of our recipes. Again, most of my recipe collection is handwritten on index cards without a scrap of information on where or when I acquired the information.

Ham is Easter in the south. Many dishes complimented the ham, but the main menu included potato salad, broccoli casserole, 5 cup salad, green salad, yeast rolls, stuffed celery, olives, pickles, sweet tea, pound cake and chocolate sheet cake. Every relative participating in the meal would also bring dishes. At least one of us made chicken and dumplings as well.

Ham: My family wasn't that big on any type of glaze for the ham. Now I don't mind having a pork roast or picnic ham in the oven for hours, but for a large gathering, it's just too easy to buy a large ham that's fully cooked and needs only be heated in the oven.

Potato Salad: I prefer mine smooth, not chunky, and creamy with mayonnaise and mustard.
Depending on the quantity you'll need, wash and chunk in medium sizes a fair amount of Irish potatoes. Smaller chunks will get tender faster without being water logged. Boil until tender then drain off all but a small amount of the water. Mash them the good old vigorous southern way.

While the potatoes are boiling, cut up in relatively small pieces of celery, pickles, onions and green olives with pimentos. You want these to be visible in your salad without being overly so. Again, the quantity depends on the amount of salad you are making.

Mix the vegetables into the mashed potatoes, add a good size dab of butter, generous with the salt and pepper, and a big dollop of mayonnaise and a smaller dollop of mustard.

Mix together well. Adjust seasons as necessary. If desired, sprinkle with paprika just before serving.

5 cup salad: My family has made this in varied form, but the one I like best is a simple 1 cup sour cream, 1 cup coconut, 1 cup mandarin oranges, drained, 1 cup pineapple chunks, drained and 1 cup miniature marshmallows. Combine all, cover and chill at least 24 hours before serving. Other ingredients or substitutions could include chopped pecans, candied cherries, chopped fresh apples, pears, etc.

Broccoli Casserole: This recipe has been around for a good while and goes by several names yet very few variations.
1 stick margarine, 1 small onion, chopped, 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup, 2 cups cooked rice, 1 large jar Cheez Whiz,
2 boxes of frozen broccoli, thawed and drained

Saute onions in margarine; mix in all other ingredients. Transfer to baking dish, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Yeast Rolls aka Last Minute Rolls: Start these about 1 1/2 hours before dinner.
1 1/4 cup scalded milk, 2 1/2 Tbsp sugar, 1/4 cup soft shortening (like Crisco), 1 1/2 tsp salt, 2 pkgs yeast, 1/4 cup warm water,
3 1/4 cup sifted flour

Into scalded milk in large bowl, stir sugar, salt and shortening. Cool to lukewarm. Sprinkle yeast in warm water until dissolved and well blended. Stir this into milk, adding flour. Mix til well blended. Cover with wax paper and tea towel (aka dish towel). Let this sit until dough doubles in size. Stir well then beat vigorously about 1/2 minute.

Fill greased 3" muffin pan cups about 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.

My dumpling recipe for good ol' chicken and dumplings will be for another time. You've got plenty to cook now as it is.

Pound Cake: This recipe is in my grandmother's handwriting and the index card has yellowed with time. Her sister was the pound cake queen in the family (after my great grandmother passed), but grandmother could make this too. I will repeat as written.

Cream 1 2/3 cup sugar with 1 cup Crisco. Add 5 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg. Add 2 cups sifted flour. Add
1/4 tsp salt. Mix flour in a little at a time, beating constantly. Add 1 tsp vanilla. Bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees. Leave cake in pan until cool.

Chocolate Sheet Cake: My mother knew this was my favorite and made it at most special occasions.

2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 1/4 lb margarine (1 stick), 1/2 cup oil, 1 cup water, 3 Tbsp cocoa, 1/2 tsp baking soda,
1/2 cup buttermilk (remember you can make a good substitution rather than buying), 2 eggs slightly beaten, 1 tsp vanilla

Boil margarine, oil, water and cocoa. Pour over flour and sugar in large bowl. Mix soda and buttermilk together. Add to mixture. Add eggs and vanilla. Pour into greased and floured 13 X 9 X 2" pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before icing.

Icing: 1/4 lb margarine, 3 Tbsp cocoa, 6 Tsp milk Mix all and boil. Add 1 lb powdered sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Beat well. Add chopped nuts if desired. Frost cake while still warm.

I hope that you enjoy your Easter, the occasion, the Easter Bunny and the recipes.

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